Stop worrying about what everyone else around you is doing. Just focus on being a better YOU. Don’t follow the crowd, lead the pack. Strive to be smarter than you were yesterday, wiser than you were yesterday, more resourceful than you were yesterday. Whatever you struggled with yesterday, TODAY is your day to conquer it. ‪#‎doyou‬‪#‎RYSEUP‬‪#‎ontheRYSE‬

Got a chance to sit down one on one with someone I really admire. Christopher Gardener, author of the book; The Pursuit of Happyness and the inspiration behind the movie. Several years ago, during a really rough point, it was his very book that inspired me to keep pushing, so I really can’t put into words what this meeting meant to me.

Never have been a star struck type of person, but there are a small handful of individuals on my list of people who I admire and would like to meet. I was able to scratch another name off. ‪#‎thankful‬‪#‎continuingthepursuit‬

Stop worrying about what everyone else around you is doing. Just focus on being a better YOU. Strive to be smarter than you were yesterday, wiser than you were yesterday, more resourceful than you were yesterday. Whatever you struggled with yesterday, TODAY is your day to conquer it.‪#‎doyou‬‪#‎RYSEUP‬‪#‎ontheryse‬

Life is a Challenge, Meet it.
Life is a Gift, Accept it.
Life is an Adventure, Dare it.
Life is a Sorrow, Overcome it.
Life is a Tragedy, Face it.
Life is a Duty, Perform it.
Life is a Game, Play it.
Life is a Mystery, Unfold it.
Life is a Song, Sing it.
Life is an Opportunity, Take it.
Life is a Journey, Explore it.
Life is a Promise, Fulfill it.
Life is a Beauty, Praise it.
Life is a Struggle, Fight it.
Life is a Goal, Achieve it.
Life is a Puzzle, Solve it.
Life is a Treat, Enjoy it.
Life is Precious, Cherish it.

Be Bold – Be True – BE Curious – Be You

It’s the first full week of a new year good people, GO GET IT!‪#‎ontheryse‬

The Christmas holidays and multiple birthdays all falling at the turning point of a New Year tends to make me a bit reflective.

A few lessons I learned from this phenomal year to take into 2015.

1. EVERYONE is dealing with their own personal struggle. Don’t let the façade of someone’s fb profile fool you. Health, financial, companionship, career oriented, etc. everyone is fighting a battle. No one is immune as we have even seen those with fame & fortune succumb to their struggles and take their own life. Knowing that we ALL deal with struggles should provide you comfort in knowing that you are not all alone. It should also provide you with the strength to push through your own personal struggles, no matter what they are.

2. Giving starts the receiving process. While you may be lacking in one area, you may have abundance in another. Genuinely sowing a seed of your time, talent or treasure into someone else who is in need and struggling to help their selves is a sure way to reap a harvest in your own area of lack & struggle.

3. The enemy of ambition is comfort. Comfort does not always mean happy, it simply means minimal risks are involved. Comfort is routine. No one wants to leave their comfort zone, no one wants to wake up early to go exercising, no one wants to stay up late to finish that project/ proposal, no one wants to keep going after they have tasted failure over and over again. It is all uncomfortable. If you want results in any part of your life, you have to be disciplined enough to step out of your comfort zone. Old ways will never open new doors.

4. Surround yourself with a truly diverse network. People who don’t look like you, don’t act like you or don’t even think like you. People with a different point of view. You don’t have to adopt their views, but be open to their different perspectives. You will grow from simply being smart, to truly garnering wisdom.

5. You are 6-inches away from everything that you want. Roughly the distance between your two ears. Develop your mind, be a continuous student on the subject of life. Set a plan for what you want and go get it. Ralph Waldo Emerson said, “The world makes way for those who KNOW where they are going.” And the good book says ‘A person’s gift makes room for them and brings them before the great.’ ‪#‎myowntruths‬‪#‎gogetit‬‪#‎ontheryse‬ #2015

Enjoyed a phenomenal birthday (s) weekend with the home team! Celebrated growth, as my daughter moved one year away from adulthood and celebrated maturity as I moved a couple of steps away from a milestone birthday.

‘Failure is not an option?’ Wisdom has taught me that some times failure is necessary. We learn so much through failures. Through our own failures, as well as the failures of others. Failure is most certainly an option, but being defeated by failure is not.

Courage is not always about gloriously overcoming death defying odds and conquering insurmountable objects, sometimes courage is simply having the strength to continue fighting during the dark moments when things haven’t gone as planned and fear is whispering in your ear trying to steal your goals and dreams. ‪#‎keepthefaith‬